Chapter 78
Noah gathered the dry branches that had fallen around the clearing and started a fire.
The knights would soon find him and Rosé, but until then, he needed some warmth to keep her body from freezing.
They could have simply held each other to share body heat—
but that was no longer an option.
“Um… N-Noah…?”
Rosé, still in his arms, said that the soles of her feet were probably scraped.
Now that he looked, she wasn’t even wearing shoes.
For a moment, panic overtook him, and his movements became rough.
Noah lifted Rosé and set her down on the ground, then instinctively grabbed her foot to check.
Because of that sudden pull, Rosé’s body toppled backward—
and before her head could hit the ground, Noah reflexively reached out to catch her.
That was his mistake.
Instead of falling, Rosé braced herself with her hands.
As a result, Noah ended up with one hand on her ankle and the other planted on the ground beside her waist—
—looking for all the world as if he were on top of her.
Rosé’s eyes trembled violently as she looked up at him.
He knew the trembling came from embarrassment, but still—
“Ah… haha… I’m fine, really…”
Noah’s own eyes shook uncontrollably.
At the same time, the desire he had managed to suppress for a while surged up without warning.
You’re insane.
Even as he cursed himself, his heart pounded too hard for him to calm down.
He wanted to kiss the soft lids that fluttered over her wide eyes,
and her small, cute nose,
and her lips—always rosy, as if she had sipped strawberry juice.
Her slender jaw, her delicate neck—
he wanted to leave traces of his lips everywhere on her body.
“…You’re not planning to stay like that forever, are you?”
If Rosé hadn’t spoken in a slightly frightened voice at that moment,
he might have actually done it.
Even if it wasn’t what she wanted.
“Zeke, good boy. Don’t go too close to the fire.”
Idiot.
Finally snapping out of it, Noah pulled away from Rosé as quickly as he could,
putting as much distance between them as possible.
“Noah, why are you sitting over there? Come warm yourself.”
“I’m fine.”
“You don’t look fine… your lips are blue…”
He was afraid that if she came any closer, he’d lose control again.
“When we return, I’ll have a separate palace prepared.”
He told himself that it was the place that was the problem.
Anywhere else, he could keep himself in check.
But being alone with her like this—in isolation—only fanned his filthy desires.
“Hm? Oh, yeah. Evelyn told me.”
“We’ll move your belongings as soon as we arrive.”
“Alright.”
Noah planned to move Rosé’s quarters to the detached palace once they returned.
He didn’t like the idea of sleeping apart,
but it was the right thing to do—for her protection.
Because whatever was growing inside him
would only get worse from here.
* * *
“Zeke? So your name’s Zeke.”
Rosé loved all animals, not just cats.
Especially the furry ones—they were soft, warm, and comforting to touch.
Still, if she had to be honest, dogs with fierce faces like this one weren’t exactly her favorite.
“Zeke, are you thirsty? Did you find me by scent alone? You’re amazing, Zeke.”
She had no choice but to talk to the hunting dog,
just to avoid the intense gaze Noah was giving her from a short distance away.
What’s his deal? I thought I was just a cat to him!
She couldn’t shake the memory of the way he’d looked at her earlier.
“Zeke, good boy. Don’t go too close to the fire.”
She sat near the fire Noah had built, patting the dog’s head and continuing to talk to him.
It would have been easier if the dog at least barked or wagged his tail,
but Zeke was so well-trained that he didn’t make a sound.
Now that I think about it… I can’t communicate with other animals at all.
She’d been able to understand a few birds along the way here, but that was it.
Even the horse she’d ridden all day only ever made meaningless whinnies.
What a strange setting.
Apparently, she could only talk to her own kind—or prey animals.
Talking to prey was a bit cruel, but she accepted it.
Wouldn’t it be nice if I could talk to all animals?
Then, even if a bear or a leopard appeared,
she could try to sweet-talk them into letting her go.
She tried to steer her thoughts elsewhere—
but it didn’t work for long.
“Noah, why are you sitting over there? Come warm yourself.”
“I’m fine.”
“You don’t look fine… your lips are blue…”
Noah’s unusual behavior wasn’t helping either.
Even if she tried to forget that strange moment earlier,
pretending nothing had happened, she couldn’t.
She hadn’t touched a man properly even once in her previous life—
but she wasn’t so naïve as to misread that look.
The way Noah had looked at her earlier—
that wasn’t the gaze one gives a beloved pet cat.
It was the gaze of a man looking at a woman—
a woman he wanted to hold right now.
But Noah thinks I’m a cat. Right? He has to… right?
Maybe he wasn’t even aware of it himself,
but he had tightened his grip on her ankle—
and then started to pull it toward him.
Ack! Stop thinking about it!
No matter how she tried to rationalize it,
the memory of that moment felt more heated and intimate
than any scene from a romantic comedy.
It was much more intense than what she’d ever imagined when she’d teased Christina and Noah about going into the forest together.
No! I’m losing it. You only think that way because you like him too much. That’s all!
There was no way Noah saw her as a woman—
let alone wanted her.
Even after replaying it in her head a hundred times,
she came to the same conclusion every time—
and still, she denied it firmly.
No way. I’m just a cute cat to him. That’s all I am.
Look at you—falling for a handsome face and a bit of kindness, again!
It was ridiculous.
He’d walked in on her while she was bathing,
slept in the same bed without hesitation—
things only lovers or married couples would do.
But they weren’t that kind of relationship.
Even if… she’d wanted it.
And to think, I asked him to check my foot like an idiot…
There hadn’t even been a real wound.
She’d said it for nothing—and ruined the mood entirely.
“Grrr… woof! Woof!”
The hunting dog, who had been lying quietly beside the fire, suddenly barked toward the trees.
As expected, a moment later, several men in knight uniforms pushed through the tall grass.
“Your Majesty! The Emperor is here!”
“Your Majesty!”
Rosé couldn’t have been happier to see Jonathan following right behind them.
“Jonathan! What took you so long?”
“We came as fast as we could.
You could have lost your way at the forest entrance—how did you manage to get lost this deep?”
Even his scolding sounded comforting.
Because if she asked, “Jonathan… do you think His Majesty might…?”
he’d cut her off sharply with something like,
‘Don’t talk nonsense after eating our food, Your Ladyship.’
I’d better focus on my duties.
For once, the man who usually scolded her endlessly felt like a blessing.
* * *
[Captain!]
[You made it back safely, Captain!]
[Of course! I knew Lady Rosé would come back safe and sound!]
[Oh, shut up. You were hiding like a coward when we got caught.]
When they finally returned to the bedroom under the knights’ escort,
Rosé found her beloved cheese-cats waiting there.
Just as she’d suspected,
Melissa must have dumped them somewhere in the forest,
expecting them to die on their own.
She really knows nothing about cats…
It was pure luck that Melissa was so clueless about animals.
Rosé hugged the cats and even patted Oliver on the head.
Then—
[Hewwo.]
A little ball of white fluff rolled out from under the bed.
Literally rolled out—probably having lost its balance while grooming itself.
“Huh…? Who are you?”
The white ball of fluff was a blue-eyed Ragdoll kitten.
Its markings were faint, and except for its eye color,
it looked almost exactly like Rosé when she had been a cat.
Someone’s pet? But this is a villa…
Of course, it wasn’t.
[I’m a baby, so I don’t have a name yet.]
“I see. But how did you get here?”
[A handsome man brought me.]
“Ah…”
[He said my mom disappeared suddenly. Don’t worry, we’ll raise it well, Captain!]
So that was it—
Noah must have found the kitten somewhere,
been reminded of Rosé,
and brought it home.
“Ha… If only I hadn’t done something stupid…”
Rosé sighed again as she watched the little kitten,
unable to help but smile softly.
